QuestionQUESTION: I Took my Blazer in for maintenance because it was hesitating when I started it as if it wasn't going to start so I figured something was wearing out. I have had my car since it was new and am very sensitive to any changes. I was advised that the intake manifold needed to be replaced and because it was being replaced I should change the waterpump and thermostat. I left the car with them overnight so the car could sit after the repairs. When I picked up the car, I drove it for maybe 1/2 hour a short distance. Stopped for a coffee and when I started it up the heat gauge ( its a digital dash) spiked right up to 125 and started flashing and didn't drop down. I took it right back to the shop and they checked the coolant to see if it was boiling and also the radiator to see if it was steaming. It wasn't so since it was the end of the day they sent me home but said if spiked up again to the stop driving and check the coolant. It ran at higher one bar below the 125 ( normally runs at 95) and stayed there but didn't go up to the top. I brought the car back the next day and they said they thought it was the sensor but then in the end replaced the thermostat with another cooler running thermostat they said. Since I got it back it has been driven very little and only short trips and it wasn't driven for 8 days. Yesterday, after a long drive 2 1/2 hours a stop for 2 hours and then a return trip it started overheating and was right up to the top and flashing. I stopped to check and the coolant reservoir was full and coolant spewing out of it. I did not notice anything coming out of the radiator. Now today they are saying the radiator cap failed. But I am confused. How would that have anything to do with the overheating problem and from what I saw it seemed that the Radiator cap did what it was supposed to under pressure. I am concerned about picking my car up and running into the same problem on another long drive. Yesterday I was stuck in the middle of no where and it cost me 300.00 to have my car towed.
ANSWER: Hi Marlie, First off why did they change the intake, was it leaking. because you now have an overheat problem after changing the intake i would suspect that something there is not right. perhaps they installed the gaskets wrong or the wrong ones there by closing off the water ports. a quick check to see if that may be the problem is a infared heat gauge the kind that you point at an object to measure heat. start the truck and check to see if there is a big heat differance once it warms up between the heads and the intake. they should be close to the same. if you do have a big differance then something is wrong. Did replacing the intake cure your hard start problem?... i would question the rad cap failure as you don't say you had an overheat problem before. That system is a coolant recovery type, it is supposed to put coolant into and take from the coolant recovery bottle. I really haven't seen anything in your question the reason for changing the intake, water pump and thermostat. Hope this helps
Hi, if you have another question you can e mail me via this page. hope my answer helped...
Bob
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Hi Bob
Thank you so much for your quick reply
My car is a 1989 Chevy Blazer 4x4 4.3 litre V6 Automatic. I have owned it since it was new.
Okay so have looked closer at the receipts and sequence of events so here it goes. The car went in to have the brakes done initially. Along with working on the brakes they did a cooling system pressure test and determined there was a possible leak. They subsequently replaced the Intake manifold ( says intake manifold gasket replace) , cooling system water pump and did a cooling system flush & fill and replaced the cooling system thermostat, thermostat gasket and the heater hose nipple ( which they said blew apart when they were doing the repairs due age). On the same receipt they show Ignition distributor cap and rotor replace. All this was done on two separate visits . The brakes the first visit and then I took it back and it stayed overnight when the work was done on the cooling system because I was told after the work was done the car had to sit and not be driven for a period of time.
The car was used after driving it home until I took it back to have the starter looked at a few days later. On that visit they replaced the starter and my starter problems went away. However that day when I left with my car was the day I drove it for 1/2 hour then noticed the overheating problem indicating on my dash. But when they checked under the hood there was no boiling over of the coolant nor was the radiator steaming or indicating anything was wrong. The gauge ran high all the way home, one bar below 125 and since it has never done that EVER I took it back the next day. They ended up replacing the thermostat. After that it was running on the gauge at 95 as it has always done. For the next 6 days it was either not driven or only used for short drives. Then it sat for 8 days as I was away. Then driven again at the most for 30 minutes at a time until two days ago when I went on the long drive. I drove it for 2 1/2 hours then it sat for approximately 2 hours, then I was back on the road for 1 hour on the highway when it did overheat. According to the information I have received today there was low pressure on the radiator cap so they are assuming that was the problem but in the conversation they also said that there was only a loss of 1 liter an half of coolant ( that matches with what I think spilled out when I stopped the car) so there was still coolant in the radiator. Perhaps it is all just coincidence that these things are all happening. Or they will have to replace all the previous work. I know water pumps, even new ones are faulty sometimes but they don't seem to think that is what it is. I have told the mechanic that I don't want my car back until they are sure they have found the problem. I have some 1 hour plus one way trips planned next week and don't want to be stuck again. It still seems very strange to me that I had unusual problems with the car reflecting over heating after the repairs had been done. They are going to take it on a longer drive today to test it some more as well.
AnswerHi Marlie. I can only assume that they know what they are doing, the only explanation i can see is that they may not have bled the cooling system properly when they did all that work. if not done properly it can get a vapour lock and not allow coolant to flow properly, because of your short trips you never really got the engine up to operating temp. the long trip was when it did get to temp. if the system is bled and all things working it shouldn't be a problem again. your right about getting a defective part, it happens all the time, far to often as far as i am conserned. hope this helps
